I have been a Bainbridge Island resident for 23 years and a public school teacher for 30 years. I am currently a fifth-grade teacher in the North Kitsap School District.

I fully appreciate the professional frustration and continual financial struggle as expressed by Michael Holloway in a guest column (“Underpaid teachers are beginning to lose hopes”) in the April 22 Review.

The Herculean effort to support a family on a teacher’s salary, the termination of the National Board Certification program, the statewide loss in teaching positions and the proposed 3 percent reduction in teacher salaries will ultimately strip our teaching profession of talent across Washington and diminish its very future – tomorrow’s teacher.

College graduates seeking to be teachers must face the difficult financial uncertainties of today’s world coupled with the pervasive and limiting financial support for education. It’s an ominous choice. The belief that I am providing a positive difference in the lives of my students has kept alive my passion for teaching.

Many of my contemporaries question why I still teach, but I understand today’s students still need excellent, committed and effective teachers.

I hope my example will inspire my younger colleagues to stay the course and continue to advocate for much deserved recognition.

Thank you Michael and Carrie for all that you do and may your fortunate students steer toward a future you’ve both helped to shape.

Myra A. Hudson

Bainbridge Island